The Next Evolution
by The Thirteenth Doctor
Summary: After entering NYZ for a research mission, an ordinary teen finds his entire life rewritten after a fateful encounter with a mysterious man. How will he cope with his new existence? Rated M for strong language and violence. Main character is OC. NOTE: Please PM me if you have issues with the way I organize the plot or write. Please review! NOTE: on hiatus indefinitely.
1. Chapter 1

So, here's my next masterpiece: _The Next Evolution_, by yours truly. Sorry if this first chapter sucks, but I need to start somewhere and all my first chapters are gonna suck a lot. Please, review and comment. Please, your suggestions help make this story literally evolve!

Chapter 1

"We'll be making our descent in ten mikes. That's ten minutes to you people," our pilot told us. I was finally about to see the epicenter of all my hard work: New York Zero, the quarantined city. Finally, I was going to unravel the mystery of NYZ. First, however, I need to explain who I am and why I'm here.

My name is Desmond Lee, and I'm a grad student working with a Gentek team to find a cure for the Mercer virus. We were so close to the zenith of our efforts, but all the test subjects had died after receiving the anti-virus. We hoped that getting a sample of Infected blood would stabilize the anti-virus and wipe out the plague.

The city slowly rose out of the water, towering several hundred feet above the water. Skyscrapers, reaching to the clouds, buildings, covered in posters and graffiti. The place looked…too clean. "Sir, I thought we were going to the Red Zone. We need the genetic sample from an Infected," I pressed, hoping for a decent reason.

"The RZ is off-limits. The area has been locked down due to an Infected riot. The Green Zone is the only place we can get your team right now. It'll take three more weeks to clear you for the Yellow Zone. Sorry, but there are limits to even Blackwatch's reach."

"Fine. Just get us on the ground and let us go. Our research can _only_ be as important as the morons of Blackwatch think it is. Sincerely, I hope you get attacked by the Infected," my partner, Jace, complained. He tends to be more hostile when our research is delayed by even a minute.

"Hey, I'm just doing my job. If it wasn't for our need of new eggheads, you wouldn't even be here."

That sparked my interest. "Wait, what do you mean?"

"We've been losing eggheads for weeks now. They're being hunted and killed by James Heller."

"Who?"

The pilot seemed amused by that. "Heller's an escaped Infected! He broke out of a Gentek research facility about a month ago. He's been destroying our work, killing our soldiers, and stealing the scientists. We believe he's working for Mercer, but we have no solid evidence of that. If you see him, run for your life and hope he doesn't kill you. May I add, I hope Heller finds you, Jace." Great advice, coming from a Blackwatch grunt.

"Watch where you're going, dumb-shit. We might actually crash!" Jace retorted.

"Jace, can you just shut the hell up for once in your life? You keep running your frickin' mouth, and we'll never get the Infected cultures! Just play nice with Blackwatch," I told him. He just turned away and looked out the window. I asked, "Pilot, why is our transfer to the Yellow Zone delayed so long?"

That got more amusement from our faceless driver. "Listen here, boy. The Heller problem has us short-handed, so unless you're joining Blackwatch, I suggest keeping your mouth shut and letting us do what we have to. Just be happy you're even here right now. Speaking of which, I need to get clearance to land." He turned off the comm. Channel and transmitted a pointless codename and request to his HQ. I felt the chopper descend, and undid the straps despite the various warnings posted inside. Before the wheels even touched, I unlocked the safety catch and forced the door open. I jumped out and landed on my feet, right in front of three other pilots. They pulled their sidearms out, but they quickly realized who I was and put them back. Behind me, the chopper made contact and I barely heard my partner jump out.

"What the hell is wrong with you!? That little stunt could've killed you! Not to mention the uproar you created. You know what, just go. Check in with Central; I need to assure the pilot that you're not Infected," Jace screamed. God, all I wanted was to get moving and try to get my hands on an Infected. The rest of the afternoon, the two of us were briefed, given the lecture about the escaped Heller, and made sure we were sent out with a field op as fast as possible.

That was not worth it, as the body we examined was too mutilated to produce enough DNA for our new cure. We tried two other sites, but neither yielded any results.

"God, what a waste. The GZ is too clean. We need better conditions if we're going to get anywhere," Jace moaned. Only one day into this, and he was already pissed.

"Head back to the base. I'm going to take a walk. Maybe I'll find some Infected along the way," I ordered. He stormed off, muttering under his breath. I headed the other way, moving to the center of the city. In reality, I was letting him leave so he would cool down. He can get volatile when he's mad. Also, I've been hearing about these new kinds of Infected that can actually control the virus, in a way. If we could find one on the streets, surely the samples would eradicate Mercer's for good.

I scoured the entire east side of the area, with no luck. The light was starting to fade, so I turned back towards the safety of the base. Suddenly, I caught something out of the corner of my eye. I was intrigued, so I started walking towards the object. I entered a dead-end alley, which was barely lit. Using the many shadows, I moved along the wall, making little noise. As I approached the end, I began to hear moaning. It sounded like the Infected, so I grabbed my Blackwatch sidearm, flicking the safety off and chambering a round.

As it happened, I was right: Infected everywhere. The only strange thing was the Blackwatch soldier standing in the center of the group.

"Hey! Are you okay?" I yelled out, not caring if the Infected attacked. None of them moved.

"Who are you and why are you here?" the soldier responded. I was confused.

"I'm a Gentek researcher. Now, come over here. They're going to-"

"Kill me? No, these...imperfect forms are useful to me and my master. Why would I let them disband and die?" That set off every alarm I had.

"What are you-wait, you're Infected?"

The soldier just laughed. "Infected? No. I am above these pathetic things. I am Evolved." So this is what the rumors meant.

"Please, let me help them. All I need is a blood sample so I can start creating a cure for Mercer's."

The soldier considered for a moment, then jumped 20 feet into the air and slammed me to the ground. As I struggled to break free, I noticed that he had spawned new arms with blades at the ends. "Why cure it, when you can harness it? Use it for your own goals?" With that, he picked me up like I was weightless. He reverted his left arm and punched me in the chest. "Now, you will become a martyr for me!" He set me down and just stood there, waiting for something to happen.

"What the hell? You're sparing me?" I inquired, trying to contain my laughter. Whatever he did, it failed.

"Why aren't you exploding? Ah, why do I care? You'll be dead soon," he sighed, jumping away after he spoke. The Infected followed after him, which was good for me. I turned the safety of my pistol back on and holstered it, walking back to the lab. What I failed to notice as I left was a patch of skin on my chest, roiling like a nest of snakes.


	2. Chapter 2

Well, here's the next chapter in the life of Desmond Lee. Why did the attack from the Evolved fail to react? Why did Lee's chest writhe? Why am I asking you these questions when I know the answers? (Please review and comment. [I don't own Prototype, but I do own all characters {except a few, who will appear later}.] Your reviews help improve the story.)

Chapter 2

I walked down the street, just observing the civilians. It was horrible: I noticed so many standing next to barrel fires, wearing masks to prevent infection, and dressed in tattered clothes barely fit for the lowest classes of society. I passed without saying a word, quietly wishing I could improve their existences. The streets were otherwise empty. Cars, abandoned and broken apart, lay everywhere. How did all this progress get ripped apart after one simple disease?

Thanks to that Evolved attack, I was hyper-alert, sensitive to even the slightest noise. I heard a shuffling in an alleyway to my right, and my body started going into overdrive. I ran for the cover of a car and ducked down, looking around the bumper to check for enemies. Sure enough, there was one civvie crouching in a shadow. I figured he was a looter, trying to get any advantage he could. I darted for the wall, and realized I couldn't surprise him from the front. Luckily, there was a sign about 30 feet above me, but how to reach it? I decided to try jumping, and got a huge surprise doing so. My experimental jump propelled me higher than I thought possible, lifting me right below the overhang. As you might think, I grabbed it and held on. Normally I would be concerned, but all I cared about was living to see tomorrow. I hauled myself up and silently walked to the edge of the overhang, so I could see my assailant. He was about 6 feet tall, thin as hell, and kept checking over his shoulder.

I knew I would have to scare him. Instead of looking for a safer route, I fell straight down. As I descended, I reached out and grabbed the man as I got close to the ground. Surprisingly, I impacted with no sensations of pain, but I wouldn't have noticed anyway, as my adrenaline was pumping.

"Who the hell are you? Don't you know assaulting a Gentek researcher is a capital offense?" I inquired. He just started sweating.

"What? I-I thought you were a scavenger. Please, just let me go," he begged. He didn't seem to be aggressive, so I dropped him.

"Get out of my sight. Never let me see you again," I ordered him. Just to make my point clear, I hauled his ass off the ground and kicked him in the chest. As I made contact, I heard something cracking. The looter flew 20 feet before slamming into a Dumpster at the end of the alley. I jumped back in surprise. I decided to walk away when I noticed that he was still breathing.

I suddenly realized that I was lost, and the light was fading fast. Lucky for me, there was an abandoned map across the street. I went and picked it up, only to find that it was near useless. I tossed it away after pinpointing the general area I needed to get to, and started to run. As I covered more and more ground, I realized that the buildings were moving past me way too quickly. I immediately dropped down and skidded to a stop, right in the middle of an intersection. As I got up, I noticed that I had somehow ripped up the road, leaving a huge ditch behind.

As I pondered this, I heard an engine. It was very close and...RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME! I decided to jump and maybe break a leg, but once again, my move shoved me way too far. This time, I eviscerated a tree. There were branches and leaves everywhere. For some reason, I didn't feel any pain. In fact, I had no scratches on my body. Someone jumped out of the back of the vehicle, which I now realized was a troop carrier.

"Hey, you! What the hell is wrong with you? First, you get yourself lost, then we almost kill you trying to look for you? Come on, Colonel Rooks is not a very patient man."

"Jesus, watch where you're going! Try this one more time, and I will have your heads on a plate!" I yelled. The soldier tackled me and injected me with something. I tried fighting him, even managing to land a few good shots, but I slowly lost my energy and blacked out.

When I came to, I realized that I wasn't at the base. Those bastards had thrown me into a hotel room and left me there to die! I slowly looked over to the nightstand, and what I saw really pissed me off. That drug knocked me out for two straight days!

Suddenly, I heard something at the door. I sat up to answer it, but a man jumped from the shadows and looked out the window, but he didn't let me see outside.

"Excuse me, but is this your room? And, may I ask, who the hell are you?" I asked, still a little hyped up on the tranquilizer.

"None of your fuckin' business, Dr. Lee. Now sit down and shut the fuck up, before I decide to kill your scrawny ass," he rumbled. Now that my eyes were adjusting, I saw he was ripped, about 6 feet tall, and wearing a bad-ass jacket. As I watched it, a strange symbol began to glow on his back.

"No, seriously, who are you? I'm just-" I started to ask, but then the door exploded inwards, with a Brawler following close behind it. The stranger just muttered something, and what he did next scared the living shit out of me.

His right arm started writhing, like there were snakes on it, but as the writhing faded, where his arm should've been was a long, sharp, curved blade attached at his shoulder! He ran up to the Infected creature and sliced its arms off, then ripped it apart. As he finished, a giant arm broke through the doorway and slammed the man right in the chest. He flew backwards and hit the wall, collapsing as he hit the floor. The owner of the arm smashed through the wall, and I noticed that it was a fucking Juggernaut. I tried to run, but something took over. I jumped off the bed, hopped onto a wall, and shoved off, taking the Juggernaut with me. Once I pulled its Hammerfists off, I shoved my fist deep into his chest. As I punctured its thick hide, I felt an object slide through my arm and into the Infected creature. I paid no attention, however, and tossed the thing back out.

The Juggernaut crushed a huge mass of Infected following it and took out a Brawler. It started squirming in pain, and then it exploded! A huge mass of tendril-looking appendages shot out of the thing, ripping everything in its path apart! I felt this amazing surge of energy, but then I hit the ground. Something picked me up, and I realized that it was the strange man. How the hell did he survive that punch?

"Son, what the fuck? I've never seen a Biobomb explode like that! My God, who the fuck infected you?" he questioned.

"What do you…who are you?"

"I'm James, James Heller. You're lucky I found you first back there, otherwise you'd be dead right now."

That got my attention. "WHAT!?"

"Hear me out. Some rogue Evolved ambushed your convoy. I couldn't save your buddies, but you didn't even have a scratch. Now I know why: you're Evolved."

"I'm not one of you. I'm a Gentek researcher, trying to create a cure for the virus!" I screamed.

"Really? A cure? They've already tried. Anyways, how did you kill all those Infected, then? Ah, that's not the point. Please, help me. I need allies, and you fit the bill. Gentek ain't the good guys here. They created the virus, they released it, and they created this entire mess. Trust me, you don't-" He suddenly collapsed, spasming on the ground. I tried to check his pulse, but I heard a small metallic _click_ just outside the door. I looked over, and saw a camouflaged soldier standing with some sort of handgun. He shot me once, and I felt myself being lifted up as I lost consciousness.


End file.
